England vs India, 4th Test: Hosts Seal Southampton Test to Clinch Series 3-1; Oval to Host Dead Rubber

It was hosts England who completed a thrilling 60-runs victory against India in the fourth and penultimate Test at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton to take an unassailable lead of 3-1 in the five-match series.

For the second time in the series, it was a great bowling effort by off-spinner Moeen Ali which helped him earn the Man of the Match Award. He bowled in the rough to perfection and ended with nine wickets in the match. They can now play the final Test at The Oval in London without any stress as they have already pocketed the series.

England began the day’s play with a lead of 233 runs with a couple of wickets left. India bagged both the wickets pretty cheaply. The hosts set the visitors a competitive target of 245 to chase in the fourth innings.

Well, it was always going to be a tough ask for India. Yet again India lost both the openers pretty cheaply. KL Rahul was a bit of unlucky as the ball kept pretty low before crashing onto the stumps.

Cheteshwar Pujara, who scored a brilliant hundred in the first innings also felt quite cheaply. It was James Anderson, who bagged the wickets of Shikhar Dhawan and Pujara.

The southpaw got off to a start yet again but failed to continue. From there on, it was an exciting partnership between skipper Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane which got India back into the game.

They batted quite superbly and shared a 102-run stand. Both played some delightful shots and were ready to play the waiting game. They played Ali quite brilliantly and batted with intent. Both played within the groove and never attempted anything fancy during their patient stay.

Eventually, it was Moeen Ali again who bagged the wicket of Kohli. From there on, it was a procession like most times in these conditions. In addition, the wickets kept tumbling on a consistent basis and India never recovered from the jolt.

Wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant played a few attacking shots before falling prey to Ali. Eventually, they were bowled out for 184 which handed England a comfortable victory.

Also, the offie kept bowling in the rough which troubled the Indian batters on a consistent basis. But it was indeed a fantastic comeback in the squad from Ali.

England vs India 2018, 4th Test Southampton – Brief Scores:

England 1^st innings 246 all-out in 76.4 overs (Sam Curran 78, Jasprit Bumrah 3/46)

India 1^st innings 273 all-out in 84.5 overs (Cheteshwar Pujara 132, Moeen Ali 5/63)

England 2nd innings 271 all-out in 96.1 overs (Jos Buttler 69, Mohammed Shami 4/57)

India 2nd innings 184 all-out in 69.4 overs (Virat Kohli 58, Moeen Ali 4/71)

England won by 60 runs to take an unassailable 3-1 lead in the 5 match series.